Reports Of His Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated!

Well, it is hard to believe that this little guy is still with us. He has a fighting spirit, there is no denying it. Popcorn has had a rough week!

1) He gets attacked by an unknown assailant, although we have a suspect.
2) Popcorn spends the night under the chicken house, without food and water.
3) We "poke" him out with a 2 x 4, and find out he is alive.
4) I put him back in the chicken house, on a bed of clean straw and he has his head pecked in by a dominant rooster (at which point, I rescue him again) Now he has a hole in his head... Literally! (ROTFL)
5) I put him in a box in the heated machinery shed, thinking that he will "expire" before morning.
6) In the morning he is alive, but barely. I thought that I should do a physical exam. I don't know why, but I felt the need to put on latex gloves ( as if that would make it MORE official or something). I could not find any broken bones and Popcorn tolerated the exam like a pro. (He was half dead) LOL.
7) I take him down to the shed by the house and hand water him with an eyedropper. He is too weak to eat, but the second time that I go to check on him, he started to drink from the eyedropper quite zealously.
8) On day four, Popcorn is STARVING, and gobbles down a lot of food and drinks eagerly between feedings. I gave him lots of corn kernels for energy and warmth. He can not stand on his own, so I have to put him in my lap to hand feed and water him.

Between gulps of water, he "growls". I don't really know how to describe the sound that Popcorn  makes. He will not take another sip until he growls - I soon discover this chicken feeding thing takes A LOT OF TIME!!! Thank the good Lord that it is warm outside - I take my coffee cup along with me and I sip on it, while Popcorn sips and growls.

Mike thinks I am bad shit cray cray!

And that was before  I had a dream where I built a chicken swing to dangle him from. Where Popcorn could hang out (literally) and rebuild his strength, or heal whatever is broken. So this morning, I got up and went through my basement until I found Peyton's jolly jumper. Then the issue became, "what do I use for the harness"? I immediately thought of a bra.

Couldn't figure out how to make that one work - but now I am minus two bras! LOL.

I finally settled on a small size reusable shopping bag, cut in strategic places for a tail, head and two legs to protrude. I found a soft, thick pad that used to be part of a floor cleaning wand that I bought years ago - I hot glued it to the bottom of the shopping bag and left a little hanging out the front to protect Popcorn's neck from the cut edge of the shopping bag. It looks like a bib!

I was hooking my "chicken hammock" up when Mike came through the door for lunch. He looked a little incredulous. Then he went into hysterics.

Seriously.

Okay, it might not be conventional, but I feel slightly responsible for the state that Popcorn is in. I did let a rooster almost peck him to death! I can not have his death on my conscience - I need to rehabilitate my little buddy!

I was not able to take any photos of Popcorn in the chicken swing - it was an epic fail!! Poor, handicapped Popcorn kept falling out on his head and landing upside down. I may have cut the hole for his head a little too big, trying to make sure that he did not feel like he was strangling! So I am going back to the drawing board.

I hate to admit defeat. Mike's comment to me when he left after lunch was, "I am pretty sure the rooster is not the only one with a hole in its head!" 

I can still hear his laughter ringing, as he shut the door....